Rejected, abused and at risk: Why LGBTQ+ young people are more likely to face homelessness
London services manager.‘But because the people I worked with were a lot younger there was a lot more support and often, in the case of schools, they had their peers.‘Whereas now, introducing some quite big social issues such as homelessness, you realise there are a lot of problems young LGBTQ+ people face when they try to access the help and support they need.’Statistics published by Stonewall in 2018 revealed 18% of LGBTQ+ people have been homeless at some point in their lives, with a majority of cases centring solely around an individual’s sexual orientation and gender identity.
It’s a figure many homelessness organisations fear is set to rise, with akt reporting an increase of 71% in the number of young LGBTQ+ people accessing its services nationally between 2021 and 2022.
And given a study from the LGBT Foundation reported 71.5% of people accessing its domestic abuse service had not thought about seeking support before, it’s fair to assume such statistics show no sign of dropping.
Ryan Douglas lived on the street for a total of three weeks after leaving his family home because of a homophobic family member. ‘It was the lowest of the low I’ve ever felt,’ he recalls. ‘It took personal strength, courage in asking for help and finding proper support to pull me out of it.’When he came out at 19, Ryan admits he was worried about how his family might react, but most were supportive.However, after being physically attacked by one member who had bullied him over his sexuality, he packed a bag and walked out of their home at 4am in the morning. ‘I walked for so long that morning and it was so cold but I had no idea where I was going, Ryan remembers.
